I've got two plants that aren't doing very well. I'm guessing that the problems are mostly related to the freakishly wet and humid summer we've had?
The first one is a coral honeysuckle that I planted last fall. It keeps getting spots that start on the leaf tips, then spread as the leaf turns yellow, until the turns brown and falls off. I've tried spraying the plant several times with a Garret Juice and sodium bicarbonate spray, and I more recently tried a milk solution, but the problem keeps coming back. Everytime I do the spray, I try to pull off any leaves that look spotted. I also had a few branches that seemed to die off entirely. The plant it now looking a bit sparse.
The second one is a Mexican plum that I also planted last fall. It is 3 to 4 feet tall. It has some sort of a problem that also affects the leaves, which then turn brown and fall off. I'm having a hard time describing the problem, but instead of getting spots and turning yellow, the leaves get kind of patchy, slightly fuzzy black over the leaves. I've also tried the sodium bicarbonate/Garrett Juice spray on it but it keeps getting worse. Most of the branches are now completely bare - there is probably only two dozen leaves or so remaining.
Is there anything I can do to save these plants, or are they goners? Any advice would be very much appreciated.
Dennis
Ailing plants
One of my Mexican plum trees got rust on the leaves, they are brown spots under the leaves, it has not defoliated, but looks definately rusty. The other one is o.k.
I think it will be alright, I don't know what to do otherwise.
A lot of the time things remedy themselves in the next cycle. We shall see, one thing for sure, plants aren't perfect all the time.
Josephine.
Dennis, you are not alone. I've got a fruitless plum tree planted spring of '06 that had a bad case of borers. Often times planting a tree to deep can suffocate it, making it a prime target for disease. Make sure that the root flare is exposed on your Mexican plum. You may also get some beneficial nematodes from your local feedstore and treat the area around the trunk. These are the steps I took to save my plumb tree and it is coming back now.
As for the honeysuckle, when do you water it? And when does it get direct sunlight? I've noticed that if I water in the morning or anytime other than evening, my plants get these brown leaf spots. I think it's because the beads of water act as magnifiers for the sunlight and burn the leaves. Also if the dew sets on the leaves it has the same effect. But that wouldn't explain the loss of entire branches. What's the soil quality like around it?
Is it maybe "verticillium wilt"? I have 4 smoke tree in 5 gal pots that I just purchased three weeks ago showing the same symptoms. Spraying with systemic fungicide didn't seem to help.
Please check this website: www.rainbowtreecare.com
I am trying Messenger on my plants to try to increase their immunity. Hope this helps.
Sita
Lone Oak - zone 7b
Sorry, didn't get the address correct. Here's the correct link:
www.rainbowtreecare.com/pdf/Verticillium.pdf
Hope this time it works.
Sita